Vastra Dhauti

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Dhauti Take a clean piece of muslin cloth 4 fingers wide and 15 feet

long. Dip it in tepid water. The borders of the cloth should be

nicely stitched on all sides and no pieces of thread should be

hanging loose. Then slowly swallow it and draw it out again. Swallow

one foot the first day and increase it daily, little by little. This

is called Vastra-Dhauti. In the beginning you may have slight

retching. It stops on the third day. This practice cures diseases of

the stomach, such as gastritis, Gulma (dyspepsia), belching, fever,

lumbago, asthma, Pleeha (diseases of spleen), leprosy, skin-diseases

and disorders of phlegm and bile. You need not practise it daily. You

can practise it once a week or once in a fortnight. Wash the cloth

with soap and keep it always clean. Drink a cup of milk after the

practice is over; otherwise, you will feel a dry sensation inside.

 

Basti This can be practised with or without a bamboo tube. But it is

better to have a bamboo-tube. Sit in a tub of water covering your

navel. Assume the posture Utkatasana by resting your body on the

forepart of your feet, the heels pressing against the posteriors.

Take a small bamboo-tube 6 fingers long and insert 4 fingers of its

length into the anus after lubricating the tube with vaseline or soap

or castor oil. Then contract the anus. Draw the water into the bowels

slowly. Shake well the water within the bowels and then expel the

water outside. It is known as Jala-Basti. It cures Pleeha, urinary

disorders, Gulma, myalga, dropsy, disorders of digestion, diseases of

the spleen and bowels, diseases arising from the excess of wind, bile

and phlegm. This Kriya should be done in the morning when the stomach

is empty. Drink a cup of milk or take your meals when the Kriya is

over. This Kriya can be practised while standing in a river.

 

There is another way of doing Basti without the help of water. It is

called Sthula-Basti. Sit in Paschimottanasana on the ground and churn

the abdominal and intestinal portions slowly with a downward motion.

Contract the sphincter muscles. This removes constipation and all the

abdominal disorders. This is not so effective as the Jala-Basti.